Dreamless
by Alastair
Summary: AU Monkey D. Luffy's new wife has just been whisked away by the Marines, under suspicion of aiding the fearsome fish-man, Arlong! But Luffy already defeated him. Where was their happy ending? LxN
1. Chapter 1

**Dreamless**

Nami smiled warmly up at him.

His heart swelled – she was just that beautiful. Sitting up on their new bed, she giggled as he sauntered towards her. Then her gaze turned shy, and he knew she wanted something from him – something new to add to what they had done on their honeymoon. It was only their first night back from that glorious resort where he had napped on her bosom and had so very gently coaxed her out of her uneasiness and into their new life as a married couple.

As he began to strip out of his shirt and pants, her eyes roved down his chest and abs. He could see her toes curl. That little smile disappeared when he left his clothes lying on the floor however, and she lifted a brow while crossing her arms.

"Luffy," she said.

Blinking, he raised up his hands – partially in defense and partially in incomprehension. "What?"

"Pick your clothes up," she said. "We're not at the hotel anymore; this is our home." She glanced behind him at the door, "And you should probably shut that before Nojiko walks by and gets a show."

"It'll be a good show."

Her cheeks burned, "There'll be _no_ show unless that door's shut!"

Laughing, he turned to shut and lock the door before picking up his clothes, and he tossed them into the hamper. He said, "Can I come to bed now?"

Nami pretended to think, tapping her lips, "Actually …"

"Hm?"

"I wanted to talk to you about something."

He sat on their bed with a pout, really wanting to try the new mattress out, but did his best to wait. Crawling over, she sat in his lap. This greatly interested Luffy, and his manhood pressed almost painfully against her soft, naked flesh. She touched his shoulders, gently rubbing them as he strived not to bump and grind – Nami was just that pretty and wonderful, and she was his wife. Did he not have a say in those matters?

"I know we just got back," she said, "but I was hoping …" There she stopped, lowering her head a bit while a blush touched her cheeks.

Luffy grinned, grabbing her hips, and he pushed her onto their new bed, hovering above her. He said, "Nami, you know I'll do anything you want. Just tell me." Leaning down, he kissed her cheek, and then whispered into her ear, "Is it naughty?"

"A little bit," she said, her smile returning gradually.

"Shishi!" Resting his forehead on hers, he made circles on her hips, and he said, "Do you want on your hands and knees again?"

"No, I want to face you for this."

He kissed her, and then said, "So tell me what you want. I'll give you anything."

Smiling a little brighter, she said, "Luffy, will you make a baby with me?"

He blinked, "A baby?"

"Please," she said. "This island hasn't seen a baby in years. I want to make a family with you, Luffy." His eyes softened, and he began to lay kisses on her face and neck. "Oh …"

"I don't mind giving you the baby you want," he said, and then he blinked in thought. "How is it naughty though?"

She giggled, "You won't be wearing a condom for this. I'll be feeling your skin inside of me."

Luffy kissed her hard, pressing her into the sheets then, and he shuddered with delight as her slightly smaller body wriggled and arched. Grasping her breasts, he lowered his head to catch a nipple, and listened to her softly cry his name. Her fingers fisted in his hair, and he felt a thrill rush through him.

She coiled her long legs around his waist, and he could feel her welcoming heat against his stomach, causing his member to engorge further. Sitting up a bit, he grinned down at her, stroking up and down her pretty thighs while her face turned interesting shades and her hips squirmed.

She had been right – it was a sensational feeling to touch her without anything between them. The heat and her constricting muscles around him were familiar, but the added consciousness of how damp he had made her drove Luffy wild. He slid in entirely, nerves jangled by her sultry, tight, moist caverns, and he fisted the sheets, attempting to regain control of himself as he remained in her to the hilt with a heaving chest.

Suddenly he was aware of warm hands on his face, and his eyes shot open to stare at her concerned face. When their gazes crossed, she smiled, "Luffy, we're making our baby."

Luffy couldn't stop it – Nami had swelled with the radiating glow of her hopefulness, and he could see the love in her eyes and feel it pulsing in her veins around him. Usually his eyes closed, so overwhelmed by his senses that he couldn't handle the additional overload of seeing, but her adoring expression – parted lips with her eyes wide and wavering – was part of the pleasure, and his seed finally soused her heated passage.

He collapsed over her, panting softly while Nami touched his cheeks and neck, and then he kissed her after he caught his breath.

Her face flushed with a pretty, soft pint tint on her cheeks, and she said, "Oh, my."

"I love you," he said, and it felt like it had just realized it – every time he met her eyes or touched her hand or made love to her caused him to relive the feeling all over again. She was perfect and beautiful.

"I …" Nami seemed surprised by his stamina that night, but how could he explain to her how wonderful her body – her whole body, inside and out – felt, and how she brought his blood to a stifling boil. "I love you too," she said, fighting the tears of pleasure coursing down her cheeks.

"I bet … this first night will do it," he said.

"I want to keep trying though," she said with a moan.

He kissed her, "I won't stop then."

Nami hiccupped, "I want this baby so much."

Luffy groaned, and he said through pants, "You're going to be a beautiful mother – more beautiful than you are now."

"You think I'm beautiful?" She clung to his chest, and he tenderly brushed her hair away from her eyes.

"Always thought so," he said, "since that first smile, Nami." Grabbing one of his hands, she kissed his palm and sucked on his fingertips, and he felt his control start to slide right out of him, "So – so beautiful."

Whimpering, she stuck his fingers right into her mouth, suckling away while he watched headedly. Swallowing hard, he continued with renewed vigor, feeling his skin's temperature rise.

She shuddered hard, and wrapped her legs around his hips, "Luffy! What's happening?"

Attempting to focus again, he realized that his skin was a bright, flushed pink, and steam was rising slowly into the air around him. Clenching his teeth tightly, he arched deeper into her, "I don't know, baby. Do you like it?"

"Yes …! You're so warm, and it feels so good," Nami said, twisting her hips, and then she groaned, falling back into their bed. The reason for this became exceedingly apparent to Luffy when she contracted around him. The fierce grip on him made his thrusts become more rapid, and he wheezed above her, riding out through her orgasm before he couldn't stand it any longer, joining her during the remainder of her peak.

In the aftermath, she looped her arms around his waist, still trembling, and sometimes kissing his hand. Luffy felt more drained than normal, but he was very happy with the results while she stroked his hair, and kissed his hand. He nuzzled her bosom, popping a teat into his mouth to listen to her soft moans. Planting kisses up her chest, and then her neck, he stopped at her lips, drawing out her tongue languidly. When their lips parted momentarily for air, he found himself smiling widely.

"Luffy?" His wife blinked a few times at his face.

"If it's a boy, let's name him Rex."

"No."

"Ah!? Why not?"

!#$&()

Nami was bright red the entire time she was out in the market. In the past year, she had grown accustomed to going out to the market every other day to buy food for herself, Nojiko, and their unexpected guest. However, that seemed like a long time ago after the wedding, and at the moment, she was certain that everyone was staring at her.

This was silly, naturally, but she did notice that people seemed to smile a bit longer at her. The baker's wife had started giving her marital advice right in the middle of bartering. So flustered by the woman – never mind the advice itself – Nami had spent a little more than usual just to get away from her!

Even so, she was happy. After everything that had happened, she was free, married to a wonderful man, and possibly expecting. A smile warmed her face at the thought, watching some children scamper by the road, and towards the schoolhouse.

She was just turning to go to the butcher's when she noticed the ship at the docks.

Blinking slowly, she began to walk towards it where a small group was clustering near by. Seeing Genzo, she approached him, and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Gen-san, what's going on?"

He said, "It's some captain from the Marines."

"Who? It's not Nezumi, is it?"

A grim line formed on his hard face. She had been hoping to see him smiling along with the other villagers, but then this mysterious ship had appeared. He said, "He showed up while you two were away for your honeymoon, but we chased him off – I thought it was for good."

Nami started to frown, "But why? What did _he_ want from you?"

"It was about you," Genzo said.

"Me?"

"Aha!" She heard a creepily familiar voice, and Nezumi stepped through the crowd, "The cat burglar, Nami."

"That's Monkey Nami now," she said. "I'm not a thief anymore."

"You see, Captain Smoker?" Nezumi turned to a man with gray hair that she hadn't noticed before. He was rather handsome with a wreath of smoke swirling about his head from the two cigars clenched between his teeth.

Captain Smoker didn't answer.

"She admits to the first crime already."

Nami blinked, "My 'first crime'?"

"Of course," he said, looking back at her since the other captain had seemed to unsettle him. "Your second crime, and the more severe, is your previous affiliation with pirates – particularly the fish-man named Arlong."

With a more a more sizable crowd around them, there was quite the uproar to this statement.

"Nami-chan was just a girl!"

"What about you!?"

"She helped save the entire island!"

"You can't lock Nami-chan up!"

"Nami-chan was forced into it!"

"Silence." The villagers almost jumped in shock at the loud, commanding tone. Captain Smoker finally stepped towards Nami, and she straightened her back as he approached. He said then, shifting the cigars in his mouth a bit to speak clearer, "No matter what these people say, I still have a warrant for your arrest. You'll be brought to a just trial to determine your fate."

Looking down, Nami organized her thoughts before she said, "All right."

"Nami-chan!"

"Don't go, Nami-chan!"

"Hey!" Genzo came forward, grabbing her shoulder, "Just what are you doing, Nami? What about-?"

"Gen-san, tell my husband to not worry about me."

"So you're coming quietly then?"

Nami said, facing the Marine Captain, "Of course, I have nothing to fear when I'm innocent!"

!#$&()

_Gah … I should be working on _TWWOO_, but here I am with this instead._

!#$&()


	2. Chapter 2

Dreamless

**Dreamless**

Luffy realized a little too late that he had no idea where he was.

Rubbing his chin, he sat quietly in the dock as he studied the destroyed town. From the appearance of the upside-down houses and buildings, it didn't seem like he would be able to get any food from this place. His stomach growled in protest as he got out, and tied his boat to the dork, but he ignored it for the time being.

Once he did a little searching, he would find food eventually, and then he could possibly fill himself to the point of bursting after being away from Fuusha Village for so long. Slinging his pack over his shoulder, Luffy walked down the dug up dirt road.

He was pondering over how much food he could salvage from the wreckages when he spotted a figure at the end of the street.

Gurgling, his stomach alerted the other person to his presence. The girl – possibly his age – ran towards him.

She touched his arm, and he stiffened in shock while she said, "Are you all right? You're one of the survivors?" He continued to blink, and she said, "You shouldn't be here anymore. Come on. I'll take you to the shelter."

_Shelter? Survivors?_ Luffy blinked, glancing around before he thought he spotted bloodstains through broken windows of the buildings. The sight of the buildings hadn't peaked his interest at first, but all of it at once – the buildings, the girl with the blue hair, and the blood – made him wonder what exactly had happened. In any case, he was mostly certain that shelter meant some kind of meal, and he wasn't about to pass up something like that, so he followed eagerly.

As it turned out, the shelter was seemingly turning into its own little village for the surviving people. The blue-haired lady served him a plate of food that he ate gladly enough while he sat and watched the happenings of the refuge.

While he watched the other people, he felt eyes on him, and he glanced to the side where a boy was sitting and sniffling. Luffy cocked his head before smiling at the boy who seemed shocked to see a grin.

"Hey," he said. "Why the tears?"

Sniffing up through his nose for a long moment, the boy then said, "My dad just died." He then tilted his head slightly, gazing up at Luffy, "Who're you anyway? I never seen you around Gosa before." Starting to blanch, Luffy eyed the blue-haired woman who suddenly appeared very interested. The boy said, "What are you doing here?"

"Not from Gosa?" She frowned, putting hands on her hips, and scowling at Luffy.

Luffy shoved the rest of the food into his mouth, and her brow quirked. He said, "I got money in my boat for the food – I was just starving! It was really good though. Who made it?"

She blinked, and said, "Boat?"

"Yeah, I just got to this island when you saw me."

Dashing away after grabbing Luffy's arm, she gently roused the despondent adults, "Hurry – we need to collect the littler ones."

Another woman blinked at her, and said, "Nojiko, whatever for?"

The newly named Nojiko said, "This guy's got a boat. We should hurry before the Fish-men spot it."

Hope spawned in mothers' eyes, and a younger woman even clutched at Luffy's hands and thanked him profusely.

That's how he found himself tugged along by the persistent woman back to the wrecked village with her and five young children, including the boy. Nojiko smiled at him, clutching his hand while they hid behind an overturned building. Some of the children seemed confused, and Luffy was as well. By 'littler ones' he thought that Nojiko had meant toddlers or even infants or children just coming into school. All of the children were older than that, however. The boy seemed to be one of the younger children of the lot, and he appeared to be about seven or eight years of age.

They crept along down the road, hiding between buildings before Nojiko abruptly paled, holding a hand up to halt them. Clutching at Luffy's pant leg, the boy frowned at him, Nojiko, and the buildings around them.

Luffy put his hand on the kid's head, studying something that looked like resignation on her face. She said, "Too late. It seems that you're stuck here with us now."

Staring at her with less comprehension than ever, he said, "Too late for what?"

"Your boat's been smashed to pieces," she said.

He scratched his chin, nodding before he said, "All right. That's that then. I'll just stay here until I can get another boat."

Sighing, Nojiko shook her head, "You don't get it. There are no boats here except for what Arlong allows to come through. You're not getting off this island for a long time – if ever." Plopping down beside her, Luffy watched as some of the kids bickered or shed tears they were feverishly wiping away, and then he looked at her. She smiled at bit back at him, and said, "You came to the wrong island, buddy."

He said, "My name's Luffy."

With a little start, she laughed softly, "My pardon then, please, Luffy. I'm Nojiko."

"I'm still pretty hungry," he said.

Rising, Nojiko ushered the children around herself, "Come on, kids. Let's go before the Fish-men see us."

A girl said, "We're not leaving the island anymore?"

Luffy frowned softly while Nojiko took her hand, gently pulling her along while the others followed. She said, "Another day maybe, but not today."

!#&()+

"Well, that was a giant flop." She opened the door, and then stepped to the side to admit Luffy entry. Coming in, he glanced around the little one-room house with its kitchen, the table and the large bed at the corner. After a moment, he sat at the table, setting his satchel on the floor. Nojiko said, "So I take it that you're dirt poor now. The Fish-men took all the money out of your boat."

"Yeah," he said, mostly unconcerned.

Perking up a finely trimmed brow, she said, "You'll need a place to stay until you can get on your feet."

"That's right."

She sat across from him, a little smile playing on her lips, "You can stay here if you want."

Grinning broadly, he said, "All right! That sounds like fun. I haven't shared a bed with anyone since my brother left the village."

Amused, she said, "You think you're going to share the bed with me?"

"Well, yeah, there's only one."

Chuckling, Nojiko stood to go to the fridge, and she said, "You're sleeping on the floor, Luffy. The bed is for me and my sister." Pulling out some food from the fridge, she started to prepare a meal, "It's going to take a long time for you to earn enough money to get along if you want to stay alive here. In fact, it's probably best that you stay hidden for a while yet. I can spare some money for a helping hand in my orchard anyway. You work for me, keep out of sight and out of trouble, and I'll keep a roof over your head and feed you. Sound good?"

When she looked back at him, she was surprised to see his head tilted back in sleep, snoring lightly at the ceiling. She laughed softly, shaking her head before turning back to the stove.

!#&()+

When he had awakened, Nojiko had greeted him with a smile and a plate full of flapjacks, and he dug in greedily.

"This tastes great!"

"Sorry, Nojiko, I'm just stopping-" Luffy turned to see a girl with orange hair walk inside. She paused in the doorway at the sight of him at the table, and then raised her eyes to his benefactor. "Nojiko? Who's this?"

"A very hungry young man," she said as Luffy pushed the empty plates back at her.

"Hey! I'm Luffy," he said.

Tilting her head, she said, "Uh huh …" She ignored him then, "Nojiko, I'm only stopping by for a few days."

She smiled, "Is it that time of the month again?"

"Nojiko!"

Luffy threw back his head, and laughed, wiping at his tears while the new girl fumed. When he was done, he looked at her, and said, "Shishi, I don't get it."

"Then why are you laughing!?" Grunting, she rubbed her forehead, "Honestly, I think this new boyfriend of yours is an idiot."

"Ah?" He said, "Boyfriend?"

"Well, he is an idiot" – "Oi, oi." – "but there's no helping it now. He's going to be staying here for a while to save up money." When the other woman stared at Nojiko in confusion, she said, "He landed in Gosa just this morning, and while he was away from it, the Fish-men thrashed his boat, and took all of his money."

Scowling, the orange-haired woman turned on Luffy, and shot a finger under his nose, "It serves you right for leaving it out like that. Don't you have any sense at all?" His eyes crossed to look at the finger, and she sighed harshly, pulling away from him. "If you cause any trouble for my sister, you'll be hearing it from me. Do you understand?" Her frown grew deeper, "Are you even listening?"

"Your hand's cut."

Starting in surprise, she stared at him before cupping her hand with the other, "And?"

"Oh, Nami, not again," Nojiko said. "Come here, and I'll help wrap it." Ushering her to the sink, she held her hand under a spray of water to rinse the cut. She said rather soothingly after a minute, "Got a little careless, did we?"

"No," she glanced back at Luffy, but he just watched them with his head at an angle. "What're you staring at?"

"Nami! What's wrong with you today?" Nami turned away from him. "Listen, you couldn't do anything about Gosa. They'll pull through just like everyone else."

"I know that."

Pinching her cheek, Nojiko said, grinning, "So quit your moping. Smile." The younger woman bared her teeth at her, and Nojiko laughed. She said, "Aah! So you are a fierce lion, huh?"

Luffy's stomach growled, and the two stared at him as if they had forgotten his presence. He said, "Got anything else to eat? Those oranges out there looked tasty."

"Don't you touch that orange grove!"

He pouted, bunching up his cheeks before leaning his head on his hand – elbow on the table, "Man, they looked good too."

Nojiko smiled, and said, "Of course. They're the best mandarin oranges in the whole East Blue. If you're good, and you work hard, you can have one at the end of the day." She winked as Luffy perked up, "As an extra treat."

"Just what are you expecting him to do here anyway?"

"He can help pick the oranges for one thing, and for two, he can fix up this old house. There's a bunch of stuff that I just don't have the time to do when I'm alone here all the time."

Scratching his head, Luffy said, "I'm not really much of a carpenter."

"See?" Nami said. "He's useless."

Nojiko grinned again, and said, "Now, now there. I'll find something he can do to keep him busy."

"I can go out hunting. I really like meat."

They both frowned at him, and he hunched his shoulders in defense. Nojiko said, "You shouldn't go into the forest. There're wild boars in there that would skewer a skinny boy like you in half." When he frowned, she laughed, and said, "Oh, I'm sure you're a strong, young man, but don't wander too deep into the forest."

"Is that why there aren't any kids here?"

She blinked.

Nami said, "What are you talking about?"

"Nojiko called 'em little ones," he scratched his cheek, "but they all looked about ten to me. None of them looked much younger than nine or ten."

"Can't you just keep your nose out of our business?"

Shooting Nami a dirty look, Nojiko said, "It is his business now. He's bound to learn sooner or later." Pulling up a chair, she sat across from him, "Listen. Once you've got enough saved up, you're going to have to start taking care of yourself, you hear?"

He blinked, looking between the two before they landed on Nojiko, "I just want to hear about the kids."

"It costs too much. There aren't a lot of people on this island with enough money to keep a baby," Nojiko said. "Just a tiny baby is worth fifty thousand berries, and that's the kind of money people need during these times."

"There hasn't been a baby born here in almost eight years," Nami said.

!#&()+

_Shaddup. I can take any direction I want with this story. Nyaaaa._

**AngelMimiru:** _Haha, indeed._

**LuffyxRuby: **_Doing so._

**Sonicmario: **_Of course. And it feels like I haven't seen you for a while for some reason. Hey._

**Fairy Of Anime: **_Will do._

**Mihase: **_Nope, no pirate Luffy here. And yes, I am so god._

**Confession68: **_Next chapter is up!_

!#&()+


	3. Chapter 3

**Dreamless**

Someone kicked him awake, and Luffy blinked up at the orange-haired woman.

Nami frowned, "The sun's up already. What are you doing still sleeping? Up, up, up!" Grunting, he turned over to go back to sleep, but that earned him a sharp kick in the back, "Wake up!"

"I'm up, I'm up," he said, scrambling to his feet, and pouting at her as he rubbed his back.

"It's about time!" She said. "Get out into the orchard already and help Nojiko. I don't want to come back and hear you've been nothing but trouble for my sister, you got that?"

"Sure," he said.

Nami didn't seem satisfied with that, but she walked away regardless, "So get out there already."

"What about breakfast?"

"What about it? You got to work for it first!" She clapped her hands, and then pointed to the door, saying, "Move it."

Luffy had a sneaking suspicion that she had the ability to be more terrifying than his grandfather was, so he moved. His stomach complained as he went outside, and he rubbed it in misery. From the aisle, Nojiko smiled at him, and nodded to the basket beside the door.

She said, "Take that, and come here."

With another grumble of his stomach, he hefted the tall basket up to carry it toward her. He said, "Now what?"

"Just hold it for me. I'm going to trim the branches a bit, and pick oranges while I do."

"What do you need me for?"

Grinning, she clipped some dead parts of the trees, and dropped the bits into a smaller basket hanging at her side. Nojiko said, "You're holding the basket for me. It's faster if I do both of these at the same time, but I can't lug the basket around easily when it starts to get full."

Luffy sighed, and tried to wait patiently, watching her pick the ripe oranges, and clip away any signs of dying branches or any that were growing out of the neat column shape of the trees. Suddenly, he realized she was talking.

She said, "Nami used to do this with me when we were younger. She doesn't have the time anymore though."

"She's prickly," he said.

Sighing, she said, "Yes … she used to be nicer then too."

He didn't say anything to that, and he looked up at the sky, tilting his head at the clear, wide expanse of blue. It looked like such a happy day, but Nojiko seemed melancholy.

"All right, I get it. What about you then? Tell me something about yourself."

Directing his eyes to her, he said, "Me?"

"Is there anyone else here?"

Luffy glanced around, realizing that her younger sister must have left already, "I guess not."

"So tell me how you got here," Nojiko said, placing two oranges into his basket.

"On a boat."

After waiting a while, she looked at him before she smiled, and laughed. It seemed to match the sky at that moment, "I see. Why were you out on your boat?"

"I was going to see the world, and I ended up here."

"See the world? What for?"

Pursing his lips, Luffy said, "I don't know."

Nojiko paused again in her harvesting, "Just what exactly does that mean? You don't go out to see the world for no good reason, Luffy-kun."

He shrugged, and said, "I guess I just wanted to see the world."

"Well, all right," she said, moving to the next aisle, and Luffy lifted the basket to follow her around. "As a grown man, I suppose you can do as you please. You know that you're stuck here though, right?"

"That's okay."

Giggling, she said, "Nothing fazes you, does it?"

"I don't mind being here. It's nice and warm."

"But my sister isn't?"

Luffy said, "No, she is. I can tell."

She stopped again to look at him evenly before turning back to her work, "Not a lot of people would say that after meeting her."

"She loves you."

"I know she does," Nojiko said with a softer voice, but she kept working steadily.

!#&()+

"Oh," the grocer said, "you're getting more than usual, Nojiko-chan. Any special occasion?"

"No, no," she said, and then she glanced about quickly to see if any Fishmen were on patrol, but they didn't appear to be in their village that day. "Someone landed on the island a few days ago, and he's stuck here. The Fishmen destroyed his boat."

The grocer turned to pick up a small sack to fill with a few vegetables before handing it to her, "For free since you're buying so much today. You be careful, Nojiko-chan."

"I will. Thank you."

"Maybe the wife and I will come and visit soon."

Nojiko smiled, "I'd love that. Nami's here for a few days though …"

"I see then," he said. "But soon, Nojiko. I promise."

Her grin brightened, and she headed down the road, "Thanks! Goodbye!"

When the man waved, she turned to face forward. It had been almost a week since the lively Monkey D. Luffy had landed on their island, and she was getting along quite well with him. Usually, whenever Nami was away at Arlong Park for an extended period, Nojiko worried, but with him around, she found that she had something else to preoccupy her worries.

It was surprisingly easy to get him to help her around the house, but when it came to him and what _he_ wanted to do, it was like wrestling a bull down to the ground while naked.

She heard the shouting as she was coming up the road to her home.

"What did we tell you about the forest!?"

Nojiko smiled, realizing that Nami was finally home. She was just turning the corner when Luffy said, "There's pork in it."

"There's boars! _Boars_, Luffy, and they'd tear you apart. I don't want to see you anywhere near the forest again."

"I can take care of some dinner," he said. "Meat is meat."

"This meat will make _you_ mince-meat!"

With any other two people, Nojiko might have thought that they were clashing, but the only one that looked angry was Nami.

"What's a little blood?" He said then.

She snapped, saying, "I don't want to see your blood on this yard too!"

Luffy held up his hand, and said, "I promise you won't see my blood on this yard."

"Idiot!" Finally noticing her, Nami pointed at Nojiko, "Tell him not to go into that forest anymore!"

Turning to him, Nojiko frowned softly in admonition, "Luffy-kun, what did we tell you? Just do as we say, and keep away from the forest. It's for your own good."

He frowned, bunching up his cheeks before turning away from them without a word. Nami said, "You have no right to be angry at us!"

"The only one that's angry is you, I think," Nojiko said.

"And you aren't? He could get really hurt in there, and no one would know until it was too late!"

"The important thing is that he doesn't go into the forest, right? He's not going into the forest so long as I'm watching him. If he does, the fault lies on me, not you, Nami." She smiled at her, "So don't worry."

Nami sighed, letting her eyes drift back to Luffy only to jerk in shock, "He's gone!" Paling, the two ran to the edge of the forest, which they had silently agreed was the line of their property. Nami hesitated about a couple of meters into the brush. Nojiko took her arm before she realized that her little sister was shaking. "Where did he go?" She whispered, "Where did he go?"

"We only took our eyes off him for a second," Nojiko said, trying to stay calm for her little sister. "He couldn't have gone far."

The act was for her sister, but her own heart was pounding. If anything happened to him, how could they forgive themselves? She could still remember how Genzo had told the villagers to endure by living, and to Nojiko, that included the man with the boyish smile. They had to ensure that he lived as well.

"Let's go look for him," Nami said, and Nojiko stared at her sister with some shock before she nodded hard.

"We'll go in together. I won't lose you too," Nojiko said.

Nami smiled nervously at her, and then the two treaded deeper into the forest.

!#&()+

Luffy frowned, putting down his glass of juice when he saw the two disappear past the tree line. Hadn't they just gone over talking to him about _not_ going into the forest?

_That's not fair,_ he thought. _I wanted to go in there!_

He debated with himself over this turn of events, watching the forest for more movement before he shrugged, and turned to go back into the house. If they said he couldn't go in, wasn't it their right to go in themselves? Perhaps, they knew how to deal with the boars.

His mouth watered as he thought about real pork meat. Nojiko and her sister seemed a little on the impoverished even though Nojiko sold well with her oranges. Thus, they didn't eat as much as he would have liked. For one thing, she and Nami had such small portions that he could even think about taking any food from them. He did wonder if it was because Nojiko was paying him for helping out around the house, but Nojiko was so happy that he was there with them that it was hard to gauge her.

However, he could read Nami like a book. Luffy had seen the naked fear in her eyes when she had seen him on the edge of the forest, the trembling in her hands as she pulled him away, and the relief in her shoulders that he had allowed her to drag him.

It was when he had squeezed her hand to reassure her that she had broken away from him, shouting angrily. He knew that it was her fear for him that had created the anger, however, and he had let it run its course.

Thus, Luffy waited for their return, lounging on his place on the floor, and sometimes dozing in and out of consciousness for the next hour or so. He was growing hungry, but he didn't think they'd like his cooking, so he sighed unhappily to himself as his stomach complained.

He blinked then, tilting his head when he heard something other than his growling stomach. Waiting a moment in silence, he heard it again – as if a shout from some distance.

Rising, he went out to the front door, opening it to peer out at the orchard as he focused on the sound. As he had waited inside, the sun had disappeared, but some light remained, leaving the orchard in blue twilight.

Outside, the sound was clearer, and he directed his eyes toward the forest, going into a cold sweat when the words became lucid.

"Luffy! Where are you!?"

"Luffy-kun!"

"Come back! Where are you, Luffy!?"

Breaking out into a run, Luffy entered the forest, his bare feet beating down at the ground to propel himself deeper.

"Luffy!"

"I'm here; don't move!"

They hadn't gone into the forest to best him or prove him insufficient. They had somehow _not_ seen him go inside for something to drink, and assumed the worst.

"Luffy!?"

"Luffy-kun, where are you!?"

He spotted them at last, and Nami seemed the spit fire as she said, "You stupid, irresponsible dolt! We told you not to come in here!"

"Get down!"

He shot his hand forward, stretching his arm as he aim between the two. Shocked by his movement, they parted, falling to either side. It was just as well, however, since, as he retracted his arm back, he had grabbed onto the tusks of the boar behind them.

Luffy smashed his head against the boar's, and then, dropping it, laid the creature dead at his feet.

Nami gaped at him, her eyes impossibly wide, and then she said, "What are you!?"

He laughed, and said, "Oh, I'm a rubber man."

"Rubber …?"

Nojiko sat up, "You ate a Devil Fruit!"

Grinning, he hoisted the boar up onto his shoulder, holding it by its tusk. With his other hand, he stretched his cheek out by grabbing the corner of his lips, "Haha, thad's righd!"

As his lips snapped back in place after releasing them, Nami then stormed towards him, "You had us worried sick!"

He smiled warmly, and the sight of it seemed to make her stop short, "Thanks for worrying about me. I was in the house though."

"In the … house?" She said.

Laughing, he spun about face, and started walking back to the house. The two soon joined him, flanking his sides. Luffy grinned at Nojiko, but looked to Nami when he felt a warm hand glide into his.

She squeezed his palm, and Luffy smiled as he reciprocated.

!#&()+

_I refuse to apologize for taking so long. I needed that break._

**stranger109: **_Thanks, and will do._

**dbzgtfan2004: **_NAFFY! Hurrah. Thanks!_

**AngelMimiru: **_Nah, she's got a staff to smack you with. Thanks for the review!_

**Kaydreams: **_I changed my mind a bit, so while it is __**before**__ what happened in Chapter One, it's not exactly the background story. Thanks for reviewing!_

**wheathermangohanssj4:**_ Nope. Wrong, heather. Wrong. Thanks for the review!_

**Confession68:**_ I do that to people. Thanks!_

!#&()+


	4. Chapter 4

**Dreamless**

Nami burst into the house, and he looked up to blink at her in confusion.

She grabbed his arm, pulling him to the bed, "You have to hide!"

Then she tried to shove him unceremoniously underneath the bed, and he struggled in alarm, "Hey! Wait a minute! What's going on!?"

"Shut up! Just get under there, and hide!" Turning away, she grabbed the blankets on the floor he used as a bed, and started folding them up hurriedly before tossing them onto the foot of the bed.

Nojiko entered then, shutting the door tight behind them, "I can't believe I forgot! Luffy-kun, what are you doing? Go hide."

However, Luffy only stared in confusion at them before Nami grabbed him boldly again, and pressed him onto the ground to wrestle him under the bed with herself, "Hide, you idiot."

When they were under the bed while he still struggled against her, he realized that she was shaking, and as she covered his mouth with her hand for silence, there came a loud knock at the door. Luffy went still then, staring into Nami's eyes in bewilderment as he listened to Nojiko answer the door.

"Is it that time already?"

The voice of a man said, "Just collecting what you owe for your life and that of the village."

Nojiko said, "All right, I got it. Don't worry."

He heard her step to the chest at the foot of the bed, and then heavier steps came into house, following her. Nami's eyes widened in her fear. Luffy focused on her face then, slowly reaching up to cup her cheek. She twitched a bit in resistance before she squeezed her eyes shut.

She looked miserable.

"I thought Nami came this way."

"I haven't seen her," Nojiko lied smoothly. "Maybe she's out in the orchard."

"When you see her, tell her Arlong wants to see her."

Nojiko said, "All right, I will. Here's the cash though." Luffy heard her walk up to the other person, and there was a shuffle of paper as the man counted it up.

His brows twitched in confusion when it passed thirty thousand berries, and then his eyes began to widen as it steadily climbed up to a hundred thousand, and stopped there. The man counted it again before he said, "Good. See you next month."

"Right," she said, and the heavier steps of the man went out the door.

Nami clutched at him a while longer, her eyes opening to look back at his twitching, angry eyes before her hand clamped tighter over his mouth. She said in a hushed, breathy whisper, "Don't do anything."

To this, he only found his ire rise, but he pressed his forehead to hers, trying to do as she was asking of him.

Nojiko said then, "He's gone now."

Breaking away from Nami, Luffy pulled himself out from under the bed, "Who was that guy!? Why'd he take all that money!? You're just barely eating now!"

Blinking in shock, Nojiko lifted her hands to calm him, "Luffy-kun, it's all right. Be quiet or-"

"No, it's not!" He pointed back at Nami while she was coming out, "Not when it makes her look like that!"

Nami paused for a split second in rising before surging to her feet when Luffy moved to the door, "Luffy! Don't do anything stupid!"

"I'm not!"

He reached up to open the door, but she grabbed his hand, pulling him away to face her, "So what are you going to do?"

Grasping her shoulders, he looked down at her, and said, "I'm going to kick his ass."

She became white as a sheet, and she clung tighter to him. Nojiko stepped in front of the door to block it with her hands on her hips, "Don't you dare. There's a reason I'm paying him, and I think it's time you ought to know it."

"I don't care."

Nami snapped, and said, "Luffy, listen to us! Just for once, listen, and don't go after him! He'd kill you!"

He tried to say, "But Nami-!"

Spreading her arms out, Nojiko said, "I'm telling you there's a damn good reason you can't go do a stupid thing like get your neck broken!"

"There's no reason good enough in this world for Nami to look unhappy!"

Eyes widening in surprise, they were dumbstruck enough that Luffy was about to pass Nojiko before they were able to react, jumping his back, and he toppled to the floor on his face. "Stop it! Just stop!" Nami said, shaking his arm while Nojiko helped keep him down on the floor.

"I know there's something wrong here! I know it makes you both sad! You don't have to look so _miserable_ though! That's why I'm going to kick his ass!"

"Stop it! We don't need to be rescued!" Nami stood then, arms trembling while she clenched her hands into tight fists, "I have a job to do now. Just stay here, and don't do anything stupid."

"What's so stupid about wanting to make you happy!? You're doing so much for me, but you won't let me give anything in return!"

Biting her bottom lip hard, she quavered as she gazed at him steadily, and she said, "I can't take what you're giving."

Luffy blinked, staring at the floor in front of him before he wrangled to sit up, and turn to Nami, "Oi!"

The door slammed shut as Nami left, and he stared at it incomprehensibly while Nojiko sat beside him, watching his face. After a moment of silence, he looked at her, and she said, "I know you're strong, but you're not that strong. It's not enough to beat them."

Starting to grimace, he dropped his head, "I just want to help."

"You can't … not like that," she said. "You can't do anything if you're dead."

!#&()+

Wiping the sweat from his brow, he looked down the lane between the two rows of orange trees within which he was pruning. He wasn't usually the one that did the pruning, but with his wife currently out, and since it seemed it had been a while since the last time, he thought he would surprise her.

Luffy found the little bits of dead twigs, cutting down them until he could see the green of life inside of it, and then moved on to find another. While he did this, he checked for ripe oranges, and placed them into the basket strapped to his back. There weren't many this time around, but Luffy vaguely recalled that Nojiko had said she picked quite a few loads while they had been on their honeymoon.

Thoughts of his honeymoon returned the memory of the night before, and he grinned to himself. Glancing along the rows again, he imagined a small child running through the trees. They could play games and hide-and-seek inside the orchard!

He also wondered how surprised everyone on the island would be. Nami hadn't even told their plans to Nojiko that morning.

After he finished with the last row, he hoisted the basket to the two-story home. Setting it down beside the sink, he turned to wash his hands before he happened to look out the window in front of himself.

"Nojiko?" He blinked, watching her run down the path that led from the village to their home. Running out the back door, he went to meet her, "Nojiko? What's wrong?"

She stopped in front of him to bend over her knees, panting hard as she said, "A Marine captain … he's taken Nami."

Luffy stared at her only a second longer before he ran for Cocoyashi, "Nami!"

"No, wait! He ate a Devil Fruit!"

"That doesn't matter!"

When he reached the village, he saw the villagers at the dock, and he ran towards the crowd. Genzo broke away to grab his arm, "Luffy, what are you doing here?"

"Nojiko told me someone took away Nami. Where is she?"

"Luffy-san!"

"Na-chan is innocent!"

"Nami-chan's being stubborn, Luffy-san!"

The butcher's wife took his hand, "It's terrible, Luffy-san. The whole village is in an uproar! Na-chan let that Captain take her away to trial."

"She let him?" Blinking rapidly, he looked out to sea where a Marine ship was heading for the horizon.

"She'll be fine," Genzo said. "She told us herself, and we all know that she's not guilty of anything." Looking at Luffy, he said, "You mustn't worry. She doesn't want that at all."

"Pinwheel guy," he said, "I'm getting my wife back."

"Don't be ridiculous! This is just the Marines doing their job. Why don't you go back home, and do yours? Nami wouldn't want everything to turn to ruin while she was away, don't you think?"

Pulling aside, Luffy ran to the dock for Nami's old little ship, and jumped onboard. He started to unfurl the sails, trying to remember how he had once seen his wife do it. While he went to work, he heard a thud on the deck, and he glanced over only to see a bag of groceries and the head of the butcher's wife peeking over the railing.

She said, "You take care of yourself, Luffy-san, and bring Na-chan back safe and sound."

Suddenly bags started appearing left and right on the deck, being thrown over the railing with plenty of heartening shouts from the villagers. A grin formed on his face as he returned to preparing the ship.

"Boy!" He heard as he was just pushing off from the dock. Luffy lifted his head, seeing Genzo standing before him, "Remember our promise!"

Grinning, he said, "Don't worry, pinwheel guy. I'll bring her home!"

!#&()+

"That idiot," she said, looking out over the water at the quick little ship. However, since he wasn't very experienced out on the sea, Luffy had yet to catch up with them.

Beside her, Smoker puffed his cigars, watching as he said, "Has he come to take you back? It's a serious offense if you escape with him before your trial."

"If he tries that, I'll bop him on the head and send him straight home. I don't have anything to run away from."

"I see," Smoker said.

"You don't believe me, do you?"

"I'm not the judge," he said after a moment spent blowing out smoke. "I'm just the escort service."

"Why isn't she in her room?" The two raised a brow at Nezumi standing behind them with an irritated air. With them both staring at him, he stepped halfway back, and said, "I mean, she's our prisoner."

Smoker said, "She walked onto the ship before we did."

"Yeah, but that's-"

The Marine captain grimaced, and Nezumi gritted his teeth, "For all intents and purposes, she's innocent until proven guilty. Now, it's fine and dandy that you've taken a sudden interest in justice, but leave dealing with prisoners to the commanding officer of the ship."

"It's … it's my ship," he said weakly.

"It's my crew that's sailing it, and they're about ready to follow orders from _stuck-up_ higher ups as much as I am."

Nezumi finally began to slink away, and Nami smiled at Smoker, "It's nice to know someone's willing to deal with him. Maybe, everything will be cleaned up at last."

!#&()+

_Well, this took a while to post. To be fair, I actually typed up the bottom half a long while ago, so this is kind of cheating._

**AngelMimiru: **_Yer a fluff, and yup, concernedness._

**Kaydreams: **_Now you've seen!_

**Confession68: **_Pissant._

**wheathermangohanssj4:**_ You're a long time._

**Sonicmario: **_I'd never stoop to apologizing anyway, so don't you worry._

!#&()+


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